The goal is to find a better system, as many of the meters are 15-20 years old or more. The city has been testing the new ones, which tell the city when the meter is out of service, if there’s a coin jam and can be used with a number of mobile apps.

Those apps tell drivers which spots are free. You can even add more time to your meter from a mobile device.

Most notably, however, is that the new meters take cards.

Most groan-worthy, however, is they tell meter maids exactly how much time until they can issue a ticket.

The city said there is hope to replace all the meters in the city. That’s about 800 meters, which will cost about $1 million. The city hopes to begin installing those meters this year.